LAW On Marriage and Family ________ Pursuant to the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; The National Assembly promulgates the Law on Marriage and Family. Chapter I GENERAL PROVISIONS Article 1. Scope of regulation This Law prescribes the marriage and family regime, legal standards for conduct by family members; responsibilities of individuals, organizations, the State and society in the building and consolidation of the marriage and family regime. Article 2. Fundamental principles of the marriage and family regime 1. Voluntary, progressive and monogamous marriage in which husband and wife are equal. 2. Marriage between Vietnamese citizens of different nationalities or religions, between religious and non-religious people, between people with beliefs and people without beliefs, and between Vietnamese citizens and foreigners shall be respected and protected by law. 3. To build prosperous, progressive and happy families; family members have the obligation to respect, attend to, care for, and assist one another; to treat children without discrimination. 4. The State and society and families shall protect and support children, elderly people and persons with disabilities in exercising marriage and family rights; assist mothers in properly fulfilling their lofty motherhood functions; and implement family planning. 5. To perpetuate and promote the Vietnamese nation’s fine cultural traditions and ethics on marriage and family. Article 3. Interpretation of terms In this Law, the terms below are construed as follows: 1. Marriage means the relation between husband and wife after they get married. 2. Family means a group of persons closely bound together by marriage, blood ties or raising relations, thus giving rise to obligations and rights among them as prescribed in this Law. 3. Marriage and family regime means all provisions of law on marriage, divorce; rights and obligations between husband and wife, parents and children, and among other family members; support; identification of parents and children; marriage and family relations involving foreign elements and other matters related to marriage and family. 4. Marriage and family practices means rules of conduct with clear contents on rights and obligations of parties in marriage and family relations, which are repetitive over a long period of time and widely accepted in an area, a region or a community. 5. Getting married means a man and a woman’s establishment of the husband and wife relation according to the provisions of this Law on marriage conditions and registration. 6. Illegally marriage means a man and a woman’s marriage already registered at a competent state agency in which either or both of them violate(s) the marriage conditions prescribed in Article 8 of this Law. 7. Cohabitation as husband and wife means a man and a woman’s organization of their living together and consideration of themselves as husband and wife. 8. Underage marriage means getting married when one or both partners has or have not reached the marriage age prescribed at Point a, Clause 1, Article 8 of this Law. 9. Forcing marriage or divorce means threatening, intimidating spiritually, maltreating, ill-treating, demanding property or another act to force a person to get married or to divorce against his/her will. 10. Obstructing marriage or divorce means threatening, intimidating spiritually, maltreating, ill-treating, demanding property or another act to obstruct the marriage of a person eligible to get married under this Law or to force a person to maintain the marriage relation against his/her will. 11. Sham marriage means making use of a marriage for the purpose of immigration, residence or naturalization in Vietnam or a foreign country; for enjoying preferential regimes of the State or for another purpose other than that of building a family. 12. Demanding property in marriage means making excessive material demand and considering it a marriage condition in order to obstruct a voluntary marriage between a man and a woman. 13. Marriage period means the duration of existence of the husband and wife relation, counting from the date of marriage registration to the date of marriage termination. 14. Divorce means termination of the husband and wife relation under a court’s legally effective judgment or decision. 15. Sham divorce means making use of a divorce to shirk property obligations or violate the policy and law on population or for another purpose other than that of terminating a marriage. 16. Family members include husband, wife; natural parent, adoptive parent, stepfather, stepmother, parent-in-law; natural child, adopted child, stepchild, child-in-law; full sibling, paternal half-sibling, maternal half-sibling, brother- or sister-in law of full sibling, paternal half-sibling or maternal half-sibling; paternal grandparent, maternal grandparent; paternal grandchild, maternal grandchild; blood paternal aunt, maternal aunt, paternal uncle, maternal uncle, niece and nephew. 17. People of the same direct blood line are those in the consanguineous relationship in which a person gives birth to another in a successive order. 18. Relatives within three generations are people born of the same stock with parents constituting the first generation; full siblings, paternal half-siblings and maternal half-siblings constituting the second generation; and children of paternal aunts, maternal aunts, paternal uncles, maternal uncles constituting the third generation. 19. Next of kin include people with marriage relation or raising relation, people of the same direct blood line and relatives within three generations. 20. Essential needs means ordinary needs for food, clothing, accommodation, learning, medical care and other ordinary needs which are indispensable in the life of each person and family. 21. Giving birth with assisted reproductive technology means giving birth through artificial insemination or in vitro fertilization. 22. Altruistic gestational surrogacy means a pregnancy carried voluntarily for non-commercial purpose by a woman for a couple of whom the wife is unable to carry a pregnancy and give birth even if assisted reproductive technology is applied. The voluntary gestational carrier is impregnated and gives birth through the transfer into her uterus of an embryo created by in vitro fertilization from the ovule of the wife and sperm of the husband. 23. Commercial gestational surrogacy means a pregnancy carried by a woman for another person through assisted reproductive technology for enjoying economic or other benefits. 24. Support means an act whereby a person has the obligation to contribute money or other kinds of property to meet the essential needs of another person who does not live together with but has marriage, blood or raising relation with the former and is a minor or an adult who has no working capacity and no property to support himself/herself, or meets with financial difficulties as prescribed by this Law. 25. Marriage and family relation involving foreign elements means the marriage and family relation in which at least one partner is a foreigner or an overseas Vietnamese or in which partners are Vietnamese citizens but the bases for establishing, changing or terminating that relation are governed by a foreign law, or that relation arises abroad or the property related to that relation is located abroad. Article 4. The State’s and society’s responsibilities for marriage and family 1. The State shall adopt policies and measures to protect marriage and family and create conditions for males and females to establish voluntary, progressive, monogamous marriage in which husband and wife are equal; build prosperous, progressive and happy families fulfilling all of their functions; intensify the dissemination and popularization of and education about the law on marriage and family; and mobilize people to abolish backward marriage and family customs and practices and promote fine traditions, customs and practices embodying the identity of each nationality. 2. The Government shall perform the unified state management of marriage and family. Ministries and ministerial-level agencies shall perform the state management of marriage and family as assigned by the Government. People’s Committees at all levels and other agencies shall perform the state management of marriage and family in accordance with law. 3. Agencies and organizations shall educate and mobilize their cadres, civil servants, public employees, laborers and members as well as every citizen to build cultured families; promptly conciliate family discords and protect the lawful rights and interests of family members. Schools shall coordinate with families in educating about, disseminating and popularizing the marriage and family law among young generations. Article 5. Protection of the marriage and family regime 1. Marriage and family relations established and implemented in accordance with this Law shall be respected and protected by law. 2. The following acts are prohibited: a/ Sham marriage or sham divorce; b/ Underage marriage, forcing a person into marriage, deceiving a person into marriage, obstructing marriage; c/ A married person getting married to or cohabitating as husband and wife with another person, or an unmarried person getting married to or cohabitating as husband and wife with a married person; d/ Getting married or cohabitating as husband and wife between people of the same direct blood line; relatives within three generations; adoptive parent and adopted child; or former adoptive parent and adopted child, father-in-law and daughter-in-law, mother-in-law and son-in-law, or stepparent and stepchild; dd/ Demanding property in marriage; e/ Forcing a person into divorce; deceiving a person into divorce; obstructing divorce; g/ Giving birth with assisted reproductive technology for commercial purpose, commercial gestational surrogacy, prenatal sex selection, cloning; h/ Domestic violence; i/ Taking advantage of marriage and family rights for human trafficking, labor exploitation or sexual abuse or committing another act for self-seeking purposes. 3. All acts of violating the marriage and family law shall be handled strictly in accordance with law. Agencies, organizations and individuals have the right to request a court or another competent agency to take measures to promptly stop and handle violators of the marriage and family law. 4. The honor, dignity, prestige, privacy and other privacy rights of parties shall be respected and protected in the course of settlement of marriage and family-related cases and matters. Article 6. Application of the Civil Code and other relevant laws For cases not prescribed by this Law, provisions of the Civil Code and other laws related to marriage and family relations may apply to marriage and family relations. Article 7. Application of marriage and family practices 1. For cases not prescribed by law or not agreed by involved parties, fine practices which embody the identity of each nationality, are not contrary to the principles prescribed in Article 2 and do not involve prohibited acts prescribed in this Law may apply. 2. The Government shall detail Clause 1 of this Article. Chapter II GETTING MARRIED Article 8. Conditions for getting married 1. A man and a woman wishing to marry each other must satisfy the following conditions: a/ The man is full 20 years or older, the woman is full 18 years or older; b/ The marriage is voluntarily decided by the man and woman; c/ The man and woman do not lose the civil act capacity; d/ The marriage does not fall into one of the cases prescribed at Points a, b, c and d, Clause 2, Article 5 of this Law. 2. The State shall not recognize marriage between persons of the same sex. Article 9. Marriage registration 1. A marriage shall be registered with a competent state agency in accordance with this Law and the law on civil status. A marriage which is not registered under this Clause is legally invalid. 2. A divorced couple who wish to re-establish their husband and wife relation shall register their re-marriage. Article 10. Persons having the right to request annulment of illegal marriage 1. A person who is forced or deceived into a marriage has, as prescribed by the civil procedure law, the right to request by himself/herself, or propose a person or an organization prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article to request, a court to annul his/her illegal marriage due to violation of Point b, Clause 1, Article 8 of this Law. 2. The following persons, agencies and organizations have, as prescribed by the civil procedure law, the right to request a court to annul an illegal marriage due to violation of Point a, c or d, Clause 1, Article 8 of this Law: a/ The spouse of a married person who gets married to another person; parent, child, guardian or another at-law representative of a person who gets married illegally; b/ The state management agency in charge of families; c/ The state management agency in charge of children; d/ The women’s union. 3. When detecting an illegal marriage, other persons, agencies or organizations have the right to propose an agency or organization prescribed at Point b, c, or d, Clause 2 of this Article to request a court to annul such marriage. Article 11. Handling of illegal marriage 1. A court shall handle illegal marriage in accordance with this Law and the civil procedure law. 2. In case at the time of a court’s settlement of a request for annulment of an illegal marriage, both partners fully satisfy the marriage conditions prescribed in Article 8 of this Law and request recognition of their marriage relation, the court shall recognize that relation. In this case, the marriage relation shall be established from the time both partners fully satisfy the marriage conditions as prescribed by this Law. 3. A court’s decision annulling an illegal marriage or recognizing a marriage relation shall be sent to the agency having registered that marriage for recording in the civil status register; to the two partners of the illegal marriage; and to related persons, agencies and organizations as prescribed by the civil procedure law. 4. The Supreme People’s Court shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Supreme People’s Procuracy and the Ministry of Justice in, guiding this Article. Article 12. Legal consequences of the annulment of illegal marriage 1. When an illegal marriage is annulled, the two partners of such marriage shall stop their husband and wife relation. 2. The rights and obligations of parents and children shall be settled according to provisions on rights and obligations of parents and children upon divorce. 3. Property relations, obligations and contracts between the parties shall be settled according to Article 16 of this Law. Article 13. Handling of ultra vires marriage registration For a marriage which is registered ultra vires , a competent state agency shall, upon request, withdraw and cancel the marriage certificate in accordance with the civil status law and request two partners to re-register their marriage with a competent state agency. In this case, the marriage relation shall be established on the date of the previous marriage registration. Article 14. Settlement of consequences of men and women cohabiting as husband and wife without marriage registration 1. A man and woman eligible for getting married under this Law who cohabit as husband and wife without registering their marriage have no rights and obligations between husband and wife. Rights and obligations toward their children, property, obligations and contracts between the partners must comply with Articles 15 and 16 of this Law. 2. For a man and woman who cohabit as husband and wife under Clause 1 of this Article and later register their marriage in accordance with law, their marriage relation shall be established from the time of marriage registration. Article 15. Rights and obligations of parents and children for men and women cohabiting as husband and wife without marriage registration Rights and obligations between a man and woman cohabiting as husband and wife and their children must comply this Law’s provisions on rights and obligations of parents and children. Article 16. Settlement of property relations and obligations and contracts between men and women cohabiting as husband and wife without marriage registration 1. Property relations, obligations and contracts between a man and woman cohabiting as husband and wife without marriage registration shall be settled under the partners’ agreement. In case there is no agreement, they shall be settled in accordance with the Civil Code and other relevant laws. 2. The settlement of property relations must ensure lawful rights and interests of women and children. Housework and other related work to maintain the cohabitation shall be regarded as income-generating labor. Chapter III RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HUSBAND AND WIFE Section 1 PERSONAL RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS Article 17. Equality in rights and obligations between husband and wife Husband and wife are equal, having equal rights and obligations in all family affairs and in the performance of citizens’ rights and obligations prescribed in the Constitution, this Law and relevant laws. Article 18. Protection of personal rights and obligations of husband and wife Personal rights and obligations of husband and wife prescribed in this Law, the Civil Code and other relevant laws shall be respected and protected. Article 19. Husband and wife attachment 1. Husband and wife have the obligations to love, be faithful to, respect, attend to, care for, and help each other and share family work. 2. Unless otherwise agreed by them or due to requirements of their occupations, work or study, or participation in political, economic, cultural or social activities or for another plausible reason, husband and wife have the obligation to live together. Article 20. Selection of domicile of husband and wife The domicile of husband and wife shall be selected as agreed by themselves without being bound by customs, practices or administrative boundaries. Article 21. Respect for honor, dignity and prestige of husband and wife Husband and wife have the obligation to respect, preserve and protect each other’s honor, dignity and prestige. Article 22. Respect for the right to freedom of belief and religion of husband and wife Husband and wife have the obligation to respect each other’s right to freedom of belief and religion. Article 23. Rights and obligations to study, work and take part in political, economic, cultural and social activities Husband and wife have the right and obligation to create conditions for each other to select professions; study and raise their educational levels and professional qualifications and skills; and take part in political, economic, cultural and social activities. Section 2 REPRESENTATION BETWEEN HUSBAND AND WIFE Article 24. Bases for determination of representation between husband and wife 1. The representation between husband and wife in establishing, making and terminating transactions shall be determined in accordance with this Law, the Civil Code and other relevant laws. 2. Husband and wife may authorize each other to establish, make or terminate transactions which, as prescribed by this Law, the Civil Code and other relevant laws, shall be agreed upon by both spouses. 3. A spouse may represent the other when the latter loses his/her civil act capacity while the former is eligible to act as the guardian or when the latter has his/her civil act capacity restricted while the former is designated by a court to act as the at-law representative of his/her spouse, unless the latter is required by law to perform by himself/herself related rights and obligations. When a spouse loses his/her civil act capacity and the other requests a court to settle divorce, the court shall designate another person to represent the pa

Law 52/2014/QH13